Re: Bobbin lace
Well, I too, started out with clothespins. I made my own pillow with a roll of paper towels covered with an old piece of material. It worked well enough for me to know that I would like to actually do it with the 'right stuff'. I spent a full year making lace edgings as a gift for a very good friend of mine (she makes antique reproduction dolls) so I thought I would practice making lace and she would benefit from it. We both enjoyed it but I haven't made any lace since then. I overdid it, I guess and am now into many other types of endeavors. If I live long enough, I may get back to it - who knows? Carolyn from Illinois To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
Re: Bobbin Lace
Holly and Louisa-- I may have you beat on what you've used. I used clothes pins for my bobbins...as Holly said, it worked for a beginner, so don't knock it. I decided that bobbin lace was not for me though so I've not done it since that first try...though it did turn out pretty good. Take care all, Jet Holly, it's amazing what we will do to experiment with a new fibre hobby! My first bobbins were whittled from wooden dowling and my pillow was a leftover chunk of insulation foam. I still have my first *ugly* pieces. To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
Re: bobbin lace
Barbara Clorite's list of tools etc. looks very thorough and I'd second her recommendations. How many bobbins you want, however, depends to some extent on the style of lacemaking you chose. I happened to learn the little bit I know in Idrija, Slovenia (we were in town for a week for a conference on mining history -- it's an old mercury mining town and my SO is a historian of mercury mining -- and there's only so much to do in such a small town, plus the weather was hot and sticky, so I convinced the people at the lacemaking school to teach me) and their lace typically only uses 6 pairs of bobbins at a time. I like the look of the lace and find it comparatively easy to handle. the book in English is called Idrija Lace, by Bridget Cook and Metka Tratnik. It's quite thorough on how each piece is made, but is best used with a more beginners' book too, such as the Torchon Lace Workbook by Bridget Cook mentioned before or Rosemary Shepherd's Introduction to Bobbin Lacemaking. jessica in NYC -- Jessica Ellen Sewell Assistant Professor/Faculty Fellow, The City John W. Draper Interdisciplinary Master's Program in Humanities Social Thought New York University 14 University Place New York NY 10003 Tel. 212.998.8157 Fax 212.995.4691 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
Re: Bobbin lace
Louisa writes: Whatever you do, Robin, don't order the bobbin lace kit from Lacis! Unless changes have been made to it recently, it's known in lace circles as The Kit From Hell. I don't have time for much bobbin lace these days, but enjoyed Buck's Point a while ago. I started out with (not kidding :) a piece of corrugated cardboard for a 'pillow', crochet cotton (bedspread weight) for 'thread', and Bic pens for bobbins--they work very well for a beginner, so don't knock 'em :) I copied a pricking from a book onto typing paper, and away I went on a sampler. I then bought the Lacis kit, as it was about the only one available. I didn't have any problems with it, but this was in the mid 80s, so maybe it's been changed? I didn't really need the kit at that point, but it gave me the confidence to continue. Finally, I made my own pillow--the type with the inset cylinder that turns--following directions in one of the bobbin lace books. It was surprisingly easy to make, and works very well. I bought a bunch of the cheap wooden bobbins from Lacis--they work just as well as the fancy kind, at least for Buck's Point laces. And I bought some of the pricking sets--lovely laces, I gave some pieces to my sister to use in her quilting, but I don't think she ever did. Has anyone spun any thread for bobbin lace? I only used commercial cotton threads, never tried the commercial linen threads, but would like to someday. Holly To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
Re: Bobbin lace
Holly, it's amazing what we will do to experiment with a new fibre hobby! My first bobbins were whittled from wooden dowling and my pillow was a leftover chunk of insulation foam. I still have my first *ugly* pieces. I have worked with my handspun coloured cotton, 2-ply, and it wasn't too bad for bobbin lace. It broke in a thin spot once or twice but was easy to repair. I've also used handspun linen for a gimp thread in a piece with commercial linen thread. I really like bobbin lace in linen -- it has a firmness and heft that cotton doesn't. You have to be a little more careful because even the commercial stuff has the occasional little slubs. Hugs, Louisa To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
Re: bobbin lace
You need at least 20 (10 pair) bobbins to start. Double that for most projects. A box of long thin straight pins, with tiny heads, that won't rust, about 10 pins with big plastic heads to keep groups of bobbins apart, and a foam pillow about 18 inches in diameter, covered in a contrasting cloth (we used a royal blue). And some balls of #10 mercerized crochet cotton, in a couple of colors and white. Also helpful, a #14 crochet hook, a few really fat plastic straws that can be slit to fit over your bobbins, some tiny scissors and reading glasses that focus you to within 4 inches of the work. For bobbins, get some professionally made smooth finished plain ones. There are some big honkers you can get for $5 a dozen and they are too big and rough catching the fine cotton yarns you want to use later. For comfort, if you can create a support system for the pillow that adjusts to various heights depending on your chair, it'll ease the stress on your back and shoulders. Or else use the same chair all the time and make a stand that fits nicely. My favorite book was A Torchon Lace Workbook because it showed the exact path of each thread. After a while you get to understand the paths of the threads, and start thinking of them as a pair. But in the beginning, it's nice to know if a thread is heading down the wrong path. Barbara C. eastern Mass. mailto: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Barbara C - eastern Mass Spindles Around the World Video To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
Re: bobbin lace
online information before you make a huge amount of purchases which in turn will help you make the right decisions etc. no affiliation - just aware that what you want to do any time may equate to more money than pleasure. http://www.allfiberarts.com/cs/bobbinlace.htm http://www.geocities.com/emmacrew/bobbin/beginner.html http://www.lace-bobbins.co.uk/links.htm I went nomail for one week whilst I hopped away for some RR from City life and spent most of it the company of other weavers/spinners etc. I usually swan away for 10days but my schedule was against me so my brothers' friends missed out big time. Am having to sort out my space again as I'm getting a very big loom in about a month! Cathy aka Tuatara, New Zealand http://flourishingfibres.iwarp.com Pre-loved books, magazines small equipment When you've taken a class check my website for those things you need g To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
Re: Bobbin lace
Whatever you do, Robin, don't order the bobbin lace kit from Lacis! Unless changes have been made to it recently, it's known in lace circles as The Kit From Hell. g The kit from Snowgoose http://www.snowgoose.cc is very adequate to get started with. In case you didn't get it yet, here's a website with tons of info: http://lace.lacefairy.com/ Hugs, Louisa (who has had a wire lace bracelet on her pillow for over a year and a half now -- tsk! tsk!) To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
